1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a holder for holding writing or drawing materials, such as crayons, chalk, or the like, and more particularly to a holder in the form of a protective tubular sleeve that includes a series of aligned positioning slots to receive positioning pegs to securely hold a stick of writing material in a desired position for use, so that the stick can be moved outwardly from the sleeve as the material is consumed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various types of crayon holder devices have been disclosed in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,205,907, which issued on June 25, 1940 to J. H. Oxley, discloses a cellulose acetate sleeve that has a greater diameter at one end than at the other end, and into which a cylindrical crayon is inserted. The sleeve has overlapped longitudinally extending edges that permit the diameter of the sleeve to be enlarged as the crayon is inserted to extend outwardly beyond the smaller diameter end of the sleeve. As the writing end of the crayon wears down as a result of use, the crayon can be pushed outwardly to present a renewed writing surface, the outward pushing action causing the overlapped portions of the sleeve to draw apart. The device permits a crayon to be used almost until it is completely used up, and without excessive waste of the material.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,870,740, which issued on Jan. 27, 1959, to T. B. H. Vogt, there is disclosed a holder for crayons having a hexagonal cross-section, such as those used by carpenters and machinists. Again, the holder is in the form of a tubular sleeve, of hexagonal cross-section in this instance, and it is formed from a material that is resilient so that it firmly grips the outer surface of the crayon and permits the crayon to be periodically extended beyond one end for convenience in holding, and also to permit the crayon to be almost completely used up.
Various other forms of crayon holders have also been disclosed, and reference is made to U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,151,933; 4,468,146; and 4,415,092.
In general, the prior art devices are not very desirable because they permit some sliding movement between the crayon and the sleeve when high writing pressure is applied to the device. An exception to that is found among the patents listed above, specifically, U.S. Pat. No. 4,468,146, which discloses a threaded sleeve and collet arrangement, which is considerably more expensive to manufacture than are the sleeve-type devices disclosed in the other patents mentioned above.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved holder in sleeve form for a crayon, or the like, wherein the holder includes a positive stop so that when the holder is used, the crayon does not slide back into the sleeve as a result of high writing or drawing pressure during use.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved crayon holder that is relatively inexpensive to manufacture.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide an improved crayon holder that can be easily used by small children.